Hockey

This is the first Play-by-Play novel that I’ve picked up, and I was interested in it because of the backdrop of the international games. Even I knew that the Winter Olympics were looming when I started reading this, and even though I haven’t watched much of the Games since I was in high school, I still remember with fondness sitting in the family room and cheering on the home team with the family (how we all saw the action on that little screen, I’ll never fully comprehend). Two of my favorite events are represented here – hockey and figure skating. What could go wrong?

I have been enjoying Sarina Bowen’s Brooklyn Bruisers, so when I saw that one of the players from the Bruisers was the hero in Bountiful, I immediately borrowed it from the library. I haven’t read any of the other books in the True North series, and I didn’t care. I would read Dave’s story!

I’ve been on a hockey kick recently, so when I saw that Rachel Gibson, an author I have enjoyed in the past, had a hockey book out, I was all over it. This is the first Chinooks Hockey Team book I’ve read (it’s #7), but I had no problem keeping up with the story. I do want to go back and read Simply Irresistible, her parents’ story from waayyy back in 1998 (and the original cover is so awful!). The Art of Running in Heels had a few troublesome moments for me, but overall, I thought it was a light, breezy read.

Head Coach is a quick, fun read about a hockey coach and a sports journalist. Neve has been covering the Hellions hockey team, and she is the bane of Tor’s existence. The head coach of the team doesn’t like distractions, and Neve has managed to constantly get under his skin. With his team struggling after one of the retirement of one of his key players and the threat of a team lockout when union negations take a turn for the worst, he isn’t in a particularly pleasant mood when dealing with the press. When Neve and Tor are caught in a compromising situation, he tries to defuse the situation by letting her sports journalist peers know that he’s rather get naked with a penguin than Neve. Ouch! Not sure that I would be forgiving after a crack like that, and Neve isn’t too sure she can ever forgive him either.

I really liked O’Doul from Rookie Move, so I was looking forward to reading his story. At first I didn’t find that there was much chemistry between Patrick and Ari, and I was a little disappointed. Maybe I wasn’t totally behind Ari as his love interest. I’ll be honest; a yoga instructor just isn’t on my list of to-die-for occupations. It’s like my disinterest in chef characters. While I love to eat, I have no love for cooking.

I love second chance romances, and I haven’t read many hockey books, so I grabbed this when I saw it at the library. I liked it enough to continue the series, but I thought the romance between Leo and Georgia was a little flat. There’s not much conflict between them that a tumble into bed won’t fix, and they pretty much pick up where they left off back in high school. Leo has never stopped loving her, and Georgia, after being the victim of a violent attack, dumps Leo right after graduation so they can get on with their lives. She feels that she is dragging him down, and that he will be better off without her.

This morning I have an excerpt and giveaway for Melting Ice by Jami Davenport.

Melting IceGame On in Seattle #5

By: Jami Davenport

Releasing June 15, 2015

Cedona Enterprises

Blurb

USA Today Bestselling author Jami Davenport presents another Seattle Sockeyes hockey romance and the fifth book in her Game On in Seattle sports romance series showcasing alpha male heroes of football, baseball, and hockey.